What should I do if my car breaks down?

Almost everything about a breakdown is manageable except where it happens. The whole of this guide is about getting people away from moving traffic before anything else is considered.

Safety

What you'll need

• A charged phone
• Breakdown cover details
• A hi-vis jacket for each occupant (optional)
• A torch (optional)

Step by step

1. Get off the carriageway if there is any chance.A slip road, a junction, a lay-by, a service area. A car that is losing power will usually still coast some distance. Anywhere off the running lanes is dramatically safer than the hard shoulder.
2. Put the hazard lights on immediately.As soon as you know you have a problem, before you have stopped. In poor visibility, sidelights too.
3. Pull as far to the left as possible.Onto the hard shoulder and as close to the nearside edge as you can get, wheels turned to the left so the car does not roll into traffic if it is struck.
4. Get everyone out through the left-hand doors.Never open a door onto the traffic side. Passengers first, then the driver, all onto the verge.
5. Get behind the barrier and up the bank.Well behind the barrier, and further along than the car rather than in front of it. Nobody stays in the vehicle and nobody stands beside it.
6. Leave animals in the car unless it is unsafe.A dog loose on a motorway verge is a hazard to itself and to everyone else. Keep it in the vehicle with windows slightly open unless there is a fire risk.
7. Call for help and describe your location.Marker posts on the verge give a location code, and the driver location signs on motorways give a precise reference. An emergency roadside phone routes automatically to the operator with your position.
8. Wear something high visibility if you have it.Carrying a hi-vis jacket for every occupant costs very little and makes an enormous difference on a dark verge.
9. Do not attempt repairs on a hard shoulder.This includes changing a wheel. The nearside is inches from traffic at seventy miles an hour and it is not a survivable place to kneel down.
10. On a smart motorway, aim for an emergency area.They are marked and spaced along the route. If you cannot reach one and are stranded in a live lane, keep seatbelts on, hazards on, stay in the vehicle and ring 999 straight away.
11. On an ordinary road, use judgement about staying in the car.On a quiet road with a wide verge, staying inside with hazards on and seatbelts fastened can be safer than standing outside, particularly in bad weather.

Tips

• Save your breakdown provider's number in your phone and keep the policy number with it. Hunting for a document on a verge in the rain is miserable.
• Note the last junction number or marker post you passed as soon as you realise there is a problem.
• A power bank in the glovebox means a flat phone never turns a breakdown into an emergency.

Common mistakes

• Standing in front of the car while waiting — If the vehicle is struck from behind it is pushed forwards. Everyone should be behind the barrier and further back along the verge, never between the car and oncoming traffic.
• Changing a wheel on a hard shoulder — It puts you kneeling beside live traffic, often on the offside. This is exactly the situation breakdown cover exists to avoid, and it is worth the wait.

If it doesn't work

Questions people ask